apophenia psychology Actions Share Share Share to social media Facebook X URL https://www.britannica.com/topic/apophenia Share Share Share to social media Facebook X URL https://www.britannica.com/topic/apophenia Written by Kara Rogers Kara Rogers is the senior editor of biomedical sciences at Encyclopædia Britannica, where she oversees a range of content from medicine and genetics to microorganisms. She joined Britannica in 2006 and... Kara Rogers Fact-checked by The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors. The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica Last Updated: Sep 12, 2024 • Article History Table of Contents apophenia, the perception of patterns or connections between unrelated or random data, objects, and ideas in situations where no such patterns actually exist. Apophenia is relatively common, representing a kind of cognitive bias that is perhaps most evident in the form of superstitions and similar generally benign beliefs. The illusory perception of patterns can occur in extreme forms, however, which can have wide-ranging impacts on human cognition and behavior—contributing, for example, to delusions and being symptomatic of mental illnesses such as paranoia and schizophrenia. The term apophänie (from an ancient Greek word meaning “to show” or “to make known”) was ...(100 of 609 words)

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